The search for two young men, who went missing during a mass drowning at Pennington Beach on KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast, continued on Sunday, as rescue teams also remain deployed in several other active sea searches across KZN’s coastline. The Pennington tragedy unfolded in the early evening of New Year’s Day, when a group of five young people was swept into the surf zone near the Pennington Beach tidal pool after being caught in powerful rip currents. Emergency services, including IPSS Medical Rescue, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), SAPS search and rescue, and Umdoni lifeguards, were deployed in an extensive operation along the coastline and out to sea.
NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said search efforts have so far recovered the bodies of two 21-year-old men. An 18-year-old woman was later rescued alive at Bazley Beach and was confirmed by police to be one of the swimmers from the group. The search continues for the remaining two missing young men.
All the victims are believed to be young adults from KwaZulu-Natal. The Pennington incident is one of several serious water-related emergencies reported across the province over the festive period. IPSS Medical Rescue spokesperson Samantha Meyrick said rescue teams are still searching for a person who drowned at Ifafa Beach in Mthwalume last Friday.
Read Full Article on The Witness
[paywall]
She confirmed that, although close in proximity, this incident is unrelated to the Pennington tragedy. Further north, IPSS Search and Rescue teams and KwaDukuza lifeguards are searching for a 40-year-old man who went missing while swimming with his 13-year-old nephew at Thompson’s Beach in Ballito last Friday.
[/paywall]
